PROTECTING POTTED PLANTS. 149 



night, and taken off in the morning, unless it happened to be 

 frosty, when, of course, it would be kept on ; and we have 

 known even geraniums, which we consider among the most 

 troublesome things to manage, go through the winter well. 

 We could not say much for the colour of the foliage after a 

 hard winter, but they have been cut back pretty freely, and 

 started into growth in the spring, and very soon recovered all 

 the health and vigour of better used plants. Myrtles have 

 hardly suffered at all ; azaleas have lost the most part of 

 their foliage, but a month in the open air and proper atten- 

 tion have restored them a good deal, and one would scarcely 

 think they were the same. Plants in dwelling-houses are 

 generally kept at the windows, and, except in very hard 

 winters, suffer but little ; these will be greatly assisted by 

 removing them to a stand in the middle of the room at 

 night, and keeping them there, if there be much of a frost, 

 as that would be more felt at the windows than in the middle 

 of an apartment. 



One great point to be attended to in all cases, whether in 

 the dwelling-house, in pits, covered, plunged, or exposed 

 more, is to give no more water than is absolutely necessary 

 to keep them ahve. We do not mean that they are to have 

 but little at a time, for that will destroy the most hardy 

 plants in existence ; but that they are not to be watered 

 oftener than they require it ; and that, when plants are at 

 rest, is very seldom indeed : when they do want it, wet all 

 the soil in the pot, but never give it them a day before they 

 require it. We would rather see a plant flag, as an indication 

 of its wants, than give it a drop a day beforehand ; for when 

 a plant is at rest, it will stand a much greater degree of cold 

 than when growing, and the tendency of watering too much 

 is to excite growth, or, failing in that, to rot the roots, there- 

 fore it ought to be avoided ; and the same applies to plants 

 in a greenhouse. When a plant will grow, we must afford 

 proper nourishment, but when at rest, we should encourage 

 the rest rather than excite it to grow. The principal thing 

 to guard against in protecting plants in winter, is damp. A 

 dry atmosphere is not easily provided when we have so much 

 humid weather, but a good deal may be done by covering 

 close on damp cloudy days, and by not crowding too many 

 plants into a small space. Where we have artificial heat, as 

 in a greenhouse, we can occasionally make fires, and by 



